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Why Your Marketing Shouldn’t Be Like a Fireworks Display

Posted on 06/30/2014

Everyone loves a good fireworks display. People wait expectantly for them around the 4th of July every year because they’re flashy, exciting and fun. But shouldn’t marketing be flashy, exciting and fun, too?

Not exactly. While it’s always good to make a big impact with your marketing, there are several reasons why flashy marketing won’t get you the most bang for your buck (pardon the pun):

- Fireworks displays are over quickly. They’re absolutely mesmerizing for an hour or so, but then they’re over. Not to be seen again for another 365 days. With marketing, it’s much better to achieve a quieter consistency over a longer period of time than to use all of your resources on one big campaign.

- Fireworks displays really aren’t that memorable. If you think back on all of the fireworks displays you’ve seen in your life, maybe you’ll be able to think of one that was particularly great. But can you recall details of what the display actually looked like? Unless you have a freakishly good memory, probably not. In general, fireworks displays are pretty similar, making them blur together in your mind. It’s important to remember that even if your marketing is big and exciting, it’s not going to be memorable if other companies are using the same tactics. Figure out a way to differentiate your brand.

- Fireworks displays are for everyone. In terms of fireworks, this is pretty awesome. Typically displays are put on by communities so that whoever is around can see them. But the problem with sending out one large blanket marketing message is that you’re wasting time, money and energy. It’s okay to have mass appeal, but really do your research to identify the demographics of your target audience. Don’t just say you’re targeting people in your community. Who in your community? What do they like? How can you best reach them?

Now go have a hot dog, watch fireworks light up the sky and ponder how you can make your business’s marketing every bit as wonderful, but much more sustainable than the display.